


Up in Smoke

by CastielMorningstar



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Caring Chloe Decker, Domestic, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fire, Hospitalization, Hurt Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), Hurt/Comfort, Living Together, Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV) Needs A Hug, Nightmares, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Vulnerable Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), house fire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-14 10:21:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29044533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CastielMorningstar/pseuds/CastielMorningstar
Summary: A knocked over candle sends Lucifer's home up in flames. Now with his home gone, Lucifer stays with Chloe while he recovers and his home is rebuilt. But the psychological impact is harder to heal. At least he has his detective by his side to help.
Relationships: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, Dan Espinoza & Lucifer Morningstar, Ella Lopez & Lucifer Morningstar, Trixie Espinoza & Lucifer Morningstar
Comments: 35
Kudos: 134





	1. Devil on Fire

**Author's Note:**

> *Yes another multi-chapter that I should have waited to post until I wrote it all, but I am very excited by this series so I wanted to post anyway!   
> I promise I won't take a million years to update like I did with my others haha. Hope you enjoy

Being the devil, Lucifer perhaps didn’t have the same amount of fire safety knowledge and awareness as the usual human. In hell he could control the elements, so on earth it slipped his mind that he couldn’t do that.

So, when Lucifer had left a lit candle burning on his coffee table, and then gone for a shower, he hadn’t thought it would be a problem. He had a window open, so he thought it would filter the smoke out and all would be good.

But the window was the problem. A breeze rushed through, knocking the candle over, which then fell to the floor and onto the carpet which promptly caught fire.

It wasn’t until Lucifer stepped out of the shower, that he started to smell the smoke.

“The hell- “he muttered, wrapping a towel around himself and stepping out of the bathroom, expecting the candle to have just gone a bit black or something.

But instead he came face to face with a wall of flames.

His eyes widened, “Shit- “

Lucifer quickly threw on some underwear, a robe and some shoes, still dripping wet, but there was no time to get dressed. He then hurried to grab something; he knew that was suggested against in the event of a fire, but Lucifer still hadn’t clocked that fire could be dangerous to him on earth; assuming that since the detective wasn’t there, then he’d be fine.

The object he grabbed, was a small wooden box that was under his bed, as well as his phone which he shoved into his robe pocket. He cradled the box in his arms, then ran towards the flames.

But the second he got too close, he felt a burning pain up his arm, and he looked to see an angry burn through his robe sleeve, “Shit!”

Apparently natural elements were not something he was immune against, even when the detective wasn’t around.

The smoke had gotten quite heavy by now and Lucifer coughed as he blinked through the haze to find the exit. The elevator wasn’t a good idea, but he had some emergency stairs. He just had to find them.

Fear started to mount in Lucifer’s heart, as he realized this was actually a danger to him. He could die right now.

“I will not go like this, dad.” He growled at the sky, ignoring his fear and running blindly through the smoke, coughing and spluttering, clutching the box and his injured arm, hoping he was going the right way.

And it turned out that despite causing the initial issue, having the window open helped, as it thinned the smoke enough that he could see the well-hidden emergency staircase.

Lucifer ran for it, nearly falling in his hurry. He took one last longing look at his ablaze penthouse, watching the flames starting to eat away at his beloved piano, his heart heavy, then took the stairs down three at a time.

By the time Lucifer got downstairs, firefighters were already swarming in; it seemed someone must have already called them.

“Were you the only one upstairs?” they asked, and Lucifer nodded, coughing, barely able to talk.

“Get him outside.” One of the firefighters instructed, and Lucifer was being quickly escorted out into the cold evening.

He shivered, the air cold for LA and he wasn’t wearing very much.

Lucifer felt like he was in a trance as he tilted his head up and saw the flames bursting out of the windows of his home above. Luckily LUX was safe on the ground floor, but he felt awful for all the people in the floors between who he’d endangered because of his mistake.

Then he was suddenly being led to a waiting ambulance, and he sat there as they looked at his arm, clinging to the box like a lifeline, all that was left of his home.

His ears were ringing, barely hearing them saying things like ‘2nd degree burn’ and ‘he needs to go to the hospital’ while his arm was wrapped in thick bandages, and a shock blanket was put over his shoulders. This all felt like some weird nightmare. He was almost numb.

But that numbness was broken when suddenly a familiar voice was crying out for him, “Lucifer!” and he looked up to see Chloe rushing towards him, Dan and Ella by her side. It seems they must have heard about the fire. It made sense since police were usually issued to fire scenes in case there was foul play involved.

“C-Chloe- “Lucifer didn’t know how desperate he’d been to see a familiar face, how scared he really was, how in pain he was, knowing the home he’d been building for years was up in flames.

“Are you okay? We heard about the fire, the station got a call and we came straight away.” Ella explained, then gasped as she saw his arm, “Lucifer your arm!”

Lucifer just blinked, his eyes suddenly hazy. His body was trembling, in part from the cold and also shock. He didn’t feel like he could speak. One of the paramedics was trying to give him oxygen but he was shoving it away.

The trio seemed to realized Lucifer was struggling, and Dan and Ella stepped aside to give Chloe some room to speak to Lucifer.

“I’m so glad you got out okay.” Chloe breathed, having been terrified that she was going to lose her partner and friend tonight.

Lucifer’s eyes turned upwards again, looking at the glow of flames coming from his penthouse and he started to crack, “M-my home…” his voice was raspy and shaky, “Its…its gone-“ a tear rolled down his face, quickly followed by another, and soon he was breaking down into tears, “I-it’s gone-“

Chloe’s heart broke as she watched her usually so strong partner, begin to break down, and without hesitation she stepped forward and pulled him into her arms, careful with his injured arm, and he clung to her with one arm, his injured one still holding onto the box he’d grabbed, afraid it would get taken away.

“Shh.” She hushed, holding him close as he cried into her shoulder, “It’ll be okay. I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

It didn’t feel like any of that was true. But Lucifer tried to let himself believe it, as he sunk into Chloe’s arms, the sirens and smell of smoke faded out and all there was, was her arms, and he let himself believe that maybe things could be okay.


	2. On the Mend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucifer gets patched up at the hospital, and has a few concerned visitors   
> (I'm not a doctor, if any of this is inaccurate don't attack me)

Lucifer didn’t realize, but while Chloe had been hugging him, he’d slowly lost consciousness, both due to the soot in his lungs and also from the shock his body was under from the wound and the trauma of the situation.

And when he next awoke, he was in a hospital bed, an oxygen tube in his nose. He immediately took it out, but a nurse walked in as he did and instructed that he put it back in, “You still need oxygen to help your lungs heal.” She insisted gently, setting a bowl of oatmeal in front of him, “Only for another few hours or so.”

Lucifer reluctantly put it back in, even though he was sure it looked stupid, but it did make breathing easier. Once he woke up enough to realize what had happened, and remember why he was there, he realized his box wasn’t anywhere to be seen, and his heart monitor beeped as his heart rate shot up, “Where’s my box? The one I had with me? I need it.” He insisted in a panicked tone.

But that was soon answered as Chloe entered, holding said box. “I’ve got it here. I took it when you passed out, to make sure it didn’t get misplaced.”

He relaxed into the pillows with a soft sigh, and after seeing he had company, the nurse left the pair alone, “Thank you.” And despite the oatmeal looking gross, he started to eat slowly because he was hungry.

Chloe approached and set the box beside him on the bed, “How are you feeling?”

Lucifer shrugged then winced as his arm radiated pain. Then he saw the button to administer the pain medication through the IV in his hand and smiled a little as he gladly gave it two pushes, and barely 30 seconds later, the pain was gone as the medication pumped into his veins, “I could get used to this.” Then he noticed a vase of flowers on the bedside table, “Ooh is that a romantic bunch of flowers, or a ‘I’m sorry your home burned down’ gift?”

Chloe rolled her eyes a little, knowing Lucifer was covering up his pain was humor, “Lucifer. I mean it. And I don’t just mean physically. I know your arm will be okay, it’ll just be a bitch for awhile. But a house fire is a big deal, and you seemed very upset. I wanted to see how you were.”

The events of last night felt like a weird blur, but Lucifer roughly remembered the flames, the smoke, the pain, the fear, and how he’d fallen into Chloe’s arms like a lost child.

He cleared his throat, minorly embarrassed, “I don’t know what you want me to say, detective.” He responded honestly, “My home…it’s gone. How do you think I feel?” he didn’t mean to snap, but he was just feeling so emotional and vulnerable and awful, that it happened without meaning to.

Chloe seemed understanding though, and didn’t get angry, “You’re right, it was a stupid question.” She sat at the end of the bed, paused for a moment then said, “The doctors said you should be good to leave later today.”

Part of Lucifer was glad about that news. He hated hospitals, and as the devil who was supposed to be immortal, he didn’t know why he’d end up here. But he had, and he was eager to leave. But where to?

Lucifer’s brief joy at leaving faded as he realized he didn’t have a home to go to, “I…suppose I’ll rent somewhere to stay- “then he realized something else.

All of his money was inside his home. Some was in his safe, yes. So thankfully it wasn’t all gone. But his wallet with a good chunk of cash, and his credit cards was probably burnt to a crisp. And who knew when he’d be able to access his safe.

“Or not.” He sighed, rubbing his head, “Great. I leave here but then I’m gonna be bloody homeless.”

He had no money and no home.

Chloe’s expression softened, “Lucifer, would you like to stay with me? Just until your home gets fixed, or when you can find somewhere else. Maze’s old room is empty, we have space.”

The offer was kind, but Lucifer’s instinct had him responding in a way that was less than, “So I’m a charity case am I now, detective?” he muttered, frustrated at all of this and feeling humiliation at needing to accept such help, making him act out.

Again, Chloe was patient. She’d seen many a trauma victim in her day, and she knew Lucifer was acting like this because he was dealing with a lot. “No, it’s because you’re my partner, my friend. And I don’t want to see you suffer any more than you already have.” She explained gently.

But Lucifer’s response was even more aggressive than the last, but it wasn’t at her, it was at himself, “Why shouldn’t I suffer? It was all my bloody fault!” he yelled, “I left a candle burning like a fucking idiot, it’s my fault, I could’ve killed any of the people living below me! I deserve this!” his tone was loud, but it stung with pain, his emotion behind this clearly not anger, but remorse and suffering.

Chloe noticed the tears glossing his eyes and reached for his hand as he caught his breath, “Lucifer…accidents like that happen all the time. Yes, you left the candle burning. But did you intend to start a fire?”

Lucifer blinked and shook his head, “No- “

“Then it wasn’t on purpose. People make stupid mistakes all the time, some more severe than others.”

Then suddenly a third voice entered the room and chimed into the conversation, “Do you think I meant to be a bad dad to Trixie? Or a bad husband? Or gotten involved in a murder investigation and stolen evidence? We all do stupid things. But what matters is that we learn from those mistakes and get better.”

It was Dan.

“Obviously it isn’t the exact same, but you get the point.”

For once, Lucifer actually listened to Dan, and nodded to his words, “Thank you Daniel. That does help put it into perspective.” His tone was a bit calmer, and he was surprised that detective douche of all people was able to rationalize him.

Chloe smiled to Dan, grateful that he’d provided some insight to help matters. Then she turned back to Lucifer, squeezing his hand softly, “I know what happened was awful, and scary and upsetting. I’ve made mistakes too that made me question my judgement and feel bad about myself. But luckily nobody did get hurt, everyone in the apartments below is okay, they had minimal damage because the fire was caught before it could spread.”

Lucifer exhaled slightly at that, “I’m glad.” He supposed his punishment was his apartment’s damage. “Have…have they assessed the damage yet?”

Chloe didn’t say anything, but Dan did, “Unfortunately it’s pretty bad, man. I went in this morning and almost nothing survived. They’ll probably let you scope it out in a few days once it’s safe.”

The devil’s heart sank yet again, and he looked down, his eyes landing on the box beside him and he reached for it instinctively, “Oh- “

“I’m sorry Lucifer.” Chloe stroked his knuckles, and the touch was nice, but it didn’t help the heaviness in Lucifer’s heart. “Do you want us to leave you alone for a bit?” she didn’t want to bother him too much while he was hurting.

Lucifer wasn’t quite sure how to reply. But he didn’t need to as suddenly a young voice was saying his name, “Lucifer!” he looked over to see Trixie in the doorway, with a tired looking Ella who it seemed had been babysitting while Dan came in.

“Sorry Dan, I know you said to wait in case he wasn’t up for more visitors, but she really wanted to see him. Is that okay, Lucifer?” Ella asked sheepishly.

The devil was tired but being surrounded by so many people who cared for him, was better medicine than any drugs they could give him. Lucifer managed a shaky smile and nod, moving the box and empty oatmeal bowl aside and letting Trixie rush over and sit beside him.

“Mommy said your house was on fire.” She said, looking upset.

Lucifer nodded again, clearing his throat, “It was.”

“Did you get hurt?”

Lucifer showed her his gauze wrapped arm, “Mhm, but it’s getting better now.”

Trixie seemed relieved to see him in one piece, and she soon almost jumped onto him with a fierce hug, “I’m glad you’re okay.”

Lucifer was mildly embarrassed to have three people watching Trixie hug him like a koala, but he didn’t mind this once, exhaling and patting her head with a small smile, “Thank you, child.” Perhaps he needed the comfort.

She soon pulled away and produced a slightly crumpled piece of paper that Lucifer hadn’t noticed before, “I made this for you.”

Lucifer took it from her and looked at the stick figure drawing of him on the front of the homemade card, with bandages on him, flames and a hospital in the background but by his side, were two other figures holding his hands. The words ‘Get well soon’ lined the top and bottom of the card.

“That’s me and mommy.” She explained and Lucifer blinked back sudden tears, clearing his throat and pretending it hadn’t deeply touched him.

“Thank you, child. It’s very thoughtful.”

Trixie smiled, “You’re welcome!”

The medicine he’d administered himself a bit earlier, was starting to kick in and Lucifer yawned.

Chloe noticed, “I think Lucifer needs to get some rest now, monkey. We should give him some space.”

Trixie reluctantly got down, waved to Lucifer then left with Dan and Ella who both wished him to get better soon.

But before Chloe could leave, Lucifer was saying, “I’d like to accept your offer to stay with you…if you’ll have me.”

Chloe smiled, “Of course. I’ll let you sleep for a bit, and I’ll be back when you wake up and you can leave with us.”

Lucifer’s eyes were already starting to flutter as fatigue pulled at him, and he didn’t resist, nodding softly, his hand already missing Chloe’s hand as she pulled away, but it soon came to rest on his box, as he pulled it closer to him, “Thank you.”

“Sleep well, Lucifer.”


	3. Home is Where the Heart Is

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucifer leaves the hospital with Chloe, but finds that the fire may have had more of a psychological impact on him than he thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Disclaimer) I am not a medical/mental health expert so any inconsistencies in the treatment of burns, or portrayal of PTSD in this fic are unintentional. I have done research to make it fairly accurate but I'm only human. Anyway enjoy!

Lucifer awoke several hours later to the ward being slightly dark. But when he opened his eyes, he found he wasn’t alone like before.

Chloe was sitting in the chair beside his bed, and as she saw his eyes flutter open, she smiled and looked over, “Welcome back to the land of the living.”

Lucifer managed a small smile back, “How long have you been sitting there?”

“Only an hour or so. I didn’t want you to wake up alone here. I know how that feels, it’s not nice.”

The devil softened a bit more at her words, touched that she cared so much, “Oh…well thank you.” He was still a little hazy with sleep, and as a result was acting gentler, his usual confident front not there. It was the natural, caring side that only Chloe really got to see.

Lucifer’s eyes then immediately scanned for his box, and he found it on the bedside table, “You nearly knocked it off the bed in your sleep.” Chloe explained, “So I set it aside so you wouldn’t break anything in it.”

The devil nodded, reaching for it and briefly opening it, scanning the contents and ensuring everything was accounted for. Then after putting Trixie’s card inside, he closed it again.

“Oh, also here’s your phone.” Chloe extended it to him, “They found it in your robe, I charged it for you.”

Lucifer was equally relieved to have that in one piece, because there were plenty of texts and photos on there that held memories, “Thank you.” He took it, noticing it was only slightly scuffed, likely from how the paramedics had handled it, but at least it was working and not aflame.

Chloe looked at the closed box curiously, wanting to ask what was inside, but she figured he was dealing with enough now, and if it was personal then perhaps he didn’t want to tell her.

Lucifer removed the tube from his nose, and was tempted to remove the IVs himself too, but he figured he’d be scolded by Chloe for that, so he left them alone, sure the nurse would be along soon to do that.

Then another thought crossed his mind, “Do you know if they kept my robe?” he knew it was burnt and torn but he had so few things of his own left that he wanted to cling to anything he had, damaged or not.

“Sorry, Lucifer. They probably tossed it because it was damaged.” Chloe responded sympathetically, “But- “she reached down and smiled a little as she produced the pair of Lucifer’s red-bottomed shoes that he’d been wearing, scuffed and dirty but still whole, “I have your shoes.”

Lucifer was disappointed about the robe but seeing that he still had a pair of his beloved shoes, cheered him up a little, “Oh. Shame about the robe, but I’m glad my shoes survived.”

Chloe knew he was hurting, and she was trying to help him feel less pain, which was hard since he’d lost almost all of his personal belongings. But she hoped even seeing that he still had his shoes would help, “I did pick you up some clothes. Nothing fancy, just something you can wear out of here since that gown isn’t exactly covering all of you.”

The devil only now really processed what he was wearing. At least he still had his underwear on, but the back on the gown was entirely open, “Ah, yes that would be a problem outside.” He noticed the bag at her feet, “I’m curious as to what type of clothes you would buy me, detective.”

“Like I said, just basics. Dan is going to bring you some of his stuff too, because I know you wouldn’t let me buy you a whole new temporary wardrobe.” She handed him the bag.

Lucifer wasn’t crazy about the idea of borrowing Dan’s clothes, but Chloe was right, he didn’t want Chloe to buy him too much, he felt bad enough her just getting him this one outfit, “Well you would be right in that assumption.”

But regardless, he opened up the bag and pulled out a pair of black jeans, a simple grey t-shirt, a navy zip-up hoodie, a pack of underwear and another of socks. Very plain and casual, but they did the job, and he was grateful for no gaudy patterns or outlandish colours. “These will do nicely. Thank you, detective.” They were certainly not Prada or Armani like he was used to, but they were decent enough. And just because he wanted to lighten the mood, and he loved being a tease, he pulled out the pack of underwear and smirked, “How did you find out what size I wore hm?”

Chloe went a bit pink, “I uh…just guessed.”

Seeing her reaction definitely made Lucifer chuckle, something he really needed, “Well you guessed right. I may be large downstairs, but my narrow waist means that a large is simply too big. Due to that fact I normally buy underwear specifically for men with large- “

Chloe interrupted, looking sufficiently flustered, “Lucifer, please. I…I’m glad to see you a bit more like your usual self but…not in public.”

Lucifer saw her blushed cheeks, and despite finding it kind of cute, he nodded, “Apologies, I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.” He put the clothes aside, his stomach rumbling and he changed the subject, “I hope they let me out soon, I would kill for a good meal.”

And as if they heard him, a nurse soon came in with a cart of medical supplies, “You’re awake.” She said, Chloe moving out of the way as she approached, “Lets get you unhooked from these machines, and your bandage changed, and you should be good to go. They have your pain meds prescription for you to pick up on your way out, along with some extra bandages to change yourself at home, and some ointment. You should change it every few days and apply the ointment every night. If you need more just let us know.” She told him as she unhooked him from the IV and heart monitor.

Then she walked around to the other side and unwrapped his arm gently. Lucifer bit his lip as it stung but he tried to pretend it didn’t hurt to save face. But when she revealed the wound, he realized it was worse than he’d thought.

The nurse saw his poorly concealed worry, “It looks worse than it really is.” She explained, tossing the used bandages aside and squeezing some ointment onto her fingertips, “It’s only second-degree so thankfully no skin graft is needed, or surgery. It will heal on its own between a few days and a few weeks, with proper care.” She gently rubbed the ointment on, and Lucifer let out a quiet whine at the deep pain that radiated through his arm.

Suddenly he felt a pressure on his hand, and he looked over to see Chloe’s hand on his, trying to comfort him. He felt embarrassed about needing to be comforted at all, but he appreciated the touch and maneuvered his hand to hold hers, interlacing their fingers.

The process didn’t take long, and once his arm was wrapped again in fresh bandages, the nurse stepped away, “And you’re set to go.” She wrote something on his chart then took it off the wall, “In regard to your lungs and possible smoke damage, it seems there wasn’t any damage to them thankfully. Just some mild smoke inhalation which we remedied with the oxygen you’ve been having. But if you have any trouble breathing, let us know.”

Lucifer nodded, mildly overwhelmed because he never thought he’d need to worry about putting ointment on his arm, or changing bandages, or smoke lung damage. It was all new and stressful. But he felt a gentle squeeze from Chloe, which assured him that she’d help him through it. He wouldn’t be alone, and that meant everything to him.

“Thank you for your help, and to anyone else who helped me.” Lucifer told the nurse, wishing he could thank the staff more for helping him; maybe he’d send a gift basket once he had access to his money again.

The nurse smiled, “Aw that’s sweet. You’re very welcome. I wish you a speedy recovery.” And with that she left the pair alone.

“I’ll give you some space to change.” Chloe said, standing up, “Call me back in when you’re done or if you need help.”

Lucifer scoffed, “Help to change? Yeah right.” But once she was gone and he was starting to change, he found he was struggling thanks to his injured arm. He was fine getting his pants on even if doing it with only one arm was hard, but when he tried to put his shirt on, he found it hard.

So, he reluctantly called out for Chloe to return, feeling defeated and pathetic, “Bloody shirt won’t go on.” He complained, holding it up, unabashedly shirtless.

Chloe tried not to stare at his bare torso as she approached, “That’s okay, your arm will make changing shirts a bit hard.” She reassured, “Let me help.” And she assisted him in maneuvering his injured arm carefully into his sleeve and pulling it down over his head, “There.” She helped him put the hoodie on too since they were going to be going outside, and she didn’t want him to be cold, and then added the sling they’d also been provided with to support Lucifer’s arm.

Lucifer felt so childish, his pride already diminished from everything that had happened so far, and this was just another jab that he didn’t appreciate.

Chloe noticed how unhappy he looked, and tried to cheer him up, “How about we stop for burgers on the way?” he’d mentioned being hungry, and burgers were sort of their thing now, so he must like them.

Food was a way to cheer up Lucifer, and he did perk up slightly at the mention of burgers, “That would be nice.”

Chloe gave him a comforting smile, “Alright, come on then.” She stepped aside as he slipped his socks and shoes on and slowly got to his feet, putting the other pairs of underwear and socks that she’d bought for him, back into the bag and holding onto it. She also grabbed the bunch of flowers on the bedside table so she could put them in his room; surely he’d appreciate the pop of colour, they could put them in a vase later.

For a moment things spun, and Lucifer stumbled into Chloe who quickly steadied him with an arm around his shoulders, “Careful.” She supported him until things levelled out again and he made a point of proving he could walk by himself, even if he was a little wobbly.

“Do you want me to carry that?” she asked, pointing to Lucifer’s box that he was clutching in his non-injured arm.

Lucifer shook his head firmly, “No I’m fine.”

He’d been very protective over it, and Chloe wanted to ask more about it, but he’d been through enough lately, and she didn’t want to accidentally upset him by pushing for him to tell her about it, if it was personal; she figured he’d tell her if he wanted to share what was inside.

“Okay. But tell me if you need help.” She felt she’d be saying that a lot, since Lucifer was famous for not knowing how to accept help when he needed it.

Lucifer just gave a reluctant nod and the pair of them walked out of the ward, collecting Lucifer’s needed medical supplies, then leaving the hospital all together. He took a deep breath as they did, relieved to smell the fresh air that wasn’t filled with the scent of disinfectant. 

“I parked just over here.” She gestured to her car which wasn’t too far away, parked in the hospital parking.

Before long they were driving to the nearest fast-food place, after Lucifer told Chloe he wasn’t picky on which one they went to, he just wanted a burger, and after all he’d been through, it was the least he deserved.

They got the food, but Lucifer suddenly seemed uninterested as a fire engine wailed by, and the sound turned his stomach, reminding him of the blanket of smoke and flames that he’d nearly been engulfed by, but his home hadn’t been able to escape.

Chloe noticed him suddenly staring into space, and she looked over in concern when they stopped at a light, “You okay?” she asked gently.

Lucifer blinked, not realizing he’d zoned out, “Can we stop by Lux?” he asked, not answering her question, his slightly trembling hands clutching the fast-food bag but not opening it.

“I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.” Chloe replied uncertainly. Returning to the place of trauma so soon after the incident usually wasn’t the best idea, she’d learnt through her years of trauma training.

But the look on Lucifer’s face as he asked, “Please.” Made her unable to resist. Maybe he needed it.

“Alright. But you can’t go inside.” She explained, changing directions, and driving towards Lux instead. “They’ll call you when it’s safe for you to go back up.”

Lucifer wanted to argue with her, insist that he was the devil, he’d be fine going up there. But the fire had proven that just because of who he was, it didn’t mean he was fully invincible, even when Chloe was absent. He had had a scary wake up call that he couldn’t be so reckless, and it was unnerving to say the least. He’d been reckless and paid the price of his home and risked the lives of others in the building too. He had to be safer in future.

So, he didn’t argue, just nodded, and fell quiet as they drove, his food sitting in his lap, forgotten, and slowly growing cold. Chloe noticed he wasn’t eating but didn’t pester him about it. Even if he wasn’t addressing it, he’d just gone through a huge trauma, and she knew that it was effecting him, and she’d do her best to help him through it.

Soon enough they reached the building, and Chloe parked outside so Lucifer could get out and look. The sun was setting, but it was bright enough to just about see the charred upper floor, with some scaffolding now placed there to stop anything collapsing.

Seeing it was like getting a knife to the gut, reminding him that despite last night feeling like a dream, it wasn’t, and his home was gone. His piano, his bar, his bed, his clothes. All gone.

Lucifer didn’t even realize his eyes had filled with tears, until he felt Chloe reach over and squeeze his hand, and he blinked, causing one of the tears to escape and run down his cheek. He sniffed and squeezed back, quickly wiping his eyes, determined to remain composed. He took a breath and with help of Chloe’s comfort, he managed to suppress the urge to cry, for now at least.

They stood there together in silence until Lucifer finally turned and got back into the car. Chloe followed his lead, not having wanted to rush his processing of the scene.

She then drove them back to her place, and noticed Lucifer was quite quiet the whole time. It worried her, but she left him be in his thoughts.

It wasn’t long before they reached Chloe’s house, and the pair got out and went inside, with Lucifer clutching his box that he’d held in his lap the whole drive, and his bag of food, and Chloe holding the flowers and bag with the remaining pairs of undergarments, and Lucifer’s medication and bandages inside.

Chloe held the door open for him to go inside and followed after. She locked the door then slid off her shoes, setting the flowers and bag on the counter. Then she noticed Lucifer looked a bit lost, stood by the door, shoes still on, “You can leave them on if you want and they’re clean.” She knew he usually wore his inside at his place.

Lucifer looked down at his sooty shoes, “Best to remove them then.” He slid them off slowly and set them neatly on the shoe rack.

“Do you want me to heat this up?” Chloe asked, gesturing to the bag of food in his hand.

The devil looked at it and shook his head. It still felt like there was a rock in his stomach, he certainly didn’t feel like eating, even if he’d been starving not long ago.

“That’s okay.” Chloe took it from him, “I’ll put it in the fridge, and you can eat it later.” She did just that and also placed the flowers into a vase with water, then noticed a bag of clothes on the couch, “Ah, Dan must have dropped these off.” She took a quick glance in the bag then handed it to him, “These are for you.” She showed it to Lucifer who peered in curiously.

He seemed a little disappointed in the clothing options, but Chloe knew he wasn’t being ungrateful. He was just used to much different clothes.

“Um…well tell Daniel I say thank you.” Lucifer wished he had his designer suits instead of Dan’s hand-me-down hoodies, but he didn’t exactly have a choice right now until he got his credit cards sorted so he could buy more.

“I will.” Chloe nodded

The two just looked at each other for a moment, tension in the air before Chloe said, “I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.” And she gestured for him to follow her, as she walked to Maze’s room which was upstairs, down the hall from Chloe’s.

Lucifer followed, carrying his box which he held close to his chest, an intense feeling of protectiveness over it, since along with his shoes it was the last piece he had of his home. He had come to learn the first time his home was threatened, that his home was LA, it was the friends he’d made here, the life he’d made. But still, losing everything you once knew and cherished, especially for Lucifer who rarely had anything to call his own until he came to earth, it hurt.

Chloe set the bag of clothes on the bed, as well as the one with the items from the hospital, and put the vase on the bedside table, “The drawers are empty so feel free to put some stuff in them, um-“ she looked down and saw one of Maze’s whips on the floor and sighed, “I’ll give that back to her another time, I don’t feel like touching it and getting an std today.”

The devil managed a weak smile at that as he gently set his box atop the dresser, surveying the room. It was fairly plain, the knife marks on the walls the only sign Maze had been there once, aside from the stray whip of course. “This is…nice, thank you Chloe.” He really appreciated her generosity.

“No problem at all.” Chloe smiled gently, “Oh in the bag I also got you some toiletries. Just some basics until you can get your usual fancy stuff.”

Lucifer peered inside a little better and indeed there was a small bottle of shampoo, a bar of soap, a toothbrush and paste, a comb, and a pack of razors and shaving cream, “You didn’t need to go to this trouble.” He felt a little guilty.

Chloe just shook her head, “Lucifer, you lost almost everything. The least I can do is get you some essentials while you get back on your feet. It’s okay, really.”

This was so hard for the man who hated asking for any type of help, now having to accept so much of it at once, from so many people, it was overwhelming. But he was trying to be okay with it. “I suppose. Well thank you, really.”

“It isn’t a problem at all.” Chloe insisted, “Anyway I’ll let you settle in. Bathroom is just downstairs under the stairs; you can put your things in there. I’ll be in the kitchen, call me if you need anything.” She smiled, then let him be.

Lucifer watched her go, then sat heavily on the bed, running his hands through his hair, and wondering how the hell he’d gotten to this point. Going from having so much, to feeling like he was a charity case who others should pity.

He wanted to shower, he wanted to eat, he wanted to be close to Chloe, to tell her all his feelings and have her hold him perhaps.

But he didn’t have the energy. He was so tired and so emotionally drained that he wanted nothing more than to sleep.

So, he put the bags on the floor for now, changing into a pair of Dan’s pajama pants, trying not to hate having to wear someone else’s clothes. They were slightly too short, the material hanging just above his ankles instead of at the base of them, but it was all he had. He didn’t bother changing his shirt, because it would be a whole hassle and he’d have to get Chloe to help him, and he didn’t feel like dealing with that humiliation.

Lucifer gathered up the toiletries and medical supplies, and wandered downstairs, situating them on a shelf in the bathroom and after quickly brushing his teeth, he left again, prepared to sleep.

Chloe saw him in the pajama pants and with a little toothpaste at the edge of his mouth, “Oh…are you going to bed?”

Glancing at the clock Lucifer realized it was only around 8pm, much too early for someone of his age to be going to bed. But the idea of being conscious right now sounded too difficult to handle. He nodded, wiping his mouth, “Yes, I’m quite tired. I hope that’s alright.”

Chloe was surprised but of course she nodded, “Yeah it’s no problem. I’m just surprised cause it’s early. But I get it, I’d be tired too after all you’ve been through.” She cleared her throat, “Well your food is in the fridge if you get hungry in the night. Anything else in the fridge or cupboard you can have too. Just maybe not Trixie’s cereal, she’s very protective of it.” She smiled gently despite being quite worried about him.

Lucifer managed a tight smile back, “I promise I shall avoid it.” He cleared his throat, “Well I shall see you in the morning. Thank you again for letting me stay. I assure once I am back on my feet, I will find a way to repay you.”

But Chloe just shook her head, “You don’t need to do that Lucifer. We’re partners, you’d do the same for me.”

He didn’t feel like arguing so for now Lucifer just nodded, “Alright. Well, goodnight detective. Sleep well.”

“Goodnight Lucifer.” She watched him walk back upstairs, biting her lip, wondering if maybe she should’ve tried to get him to open up a little more about how he was feeling, but that wouldn’t be the best idea. Pushing Lucifer usually only made him clam up more, that she’d learnt. So, she’d just have to wait until he was ready to come to her.

Lucifer trudged back upstairs, passing Chloe’s door, and reaching what would be his bedroom for awhile. He entered and shakily sat down on the bed, pulling his box into his lap, and just holding it, like a child may hold a teddy bear, or some other comfort object.

He took a deep breath, feeling emotion rising up in his chest, making his throat tight and his eyes sting. But he tried to shove it back down again, afraid of the pain it would bring to linger on those feelings too much. Just that one meltdown in the ambulance had been bad enough. He needed to suppress it.

So, Lucifer switched off the light, got into the bed but still held the box against his chest. It was hard and uncomfortable, but he didn’t care, he needed to hold the last part of him home close.

And despite everything, Lucifer managed to fall asleep after only half an hour or so of lying there.

But it didn’t take long before his mind was plagued with images of the incident, feeling so real that when he awoke with a start around midnight, he swore he could still smell the smoke.

Paranoid that it was more than just a memory smell, Lucifer had crept his way downstairs, careful to not wake Chloe, needing to check everything was fine, for his peace of mind.

He tensed up as he reached the base of the stairs, expecting to round the corner and be faced with a wall of flames. But thankfully everything looked just fine, but he checked just to be sure.

First the oven, he checked the knobs and buttons three times, making sure they were on. Then the fireplace which obviously had no fire in it, but he checked anyway. Then he checked any other appliances to make sure they weren’t smoking, and again found nothing.

Then when he glanced out the window, he saw one of the neighbors smoking outside and sighed. That must’ve been why he smelt smoke.

Despite seeing the cause of the smell, Lucifer’s adrenaline was still on high alert plus he was also hungry now after not eating since the oatmeal at the hospital that morning.

He took his abandoned fast-food bag out of the fridge but realized a heated-up burger and fries after sitting in the fridge for hours would probably be gross. So, he tossed it, and searched for something else, settling on a bowl of cereal, not Trixie’s cereal though, just some basic Cheerios.

It wasn’t anything fancy, but it filled the hole in his stomach for now. Once he’d eaten it, he started to feel tired again, however he was worried that if he went back upstairs then something would happen to cause a fire. So, he decided to stay awake, sitting on the couch and looking around suspiciously at any fire-hazards.

But it didn’t take long for sleep to catch up to the devil, and within half an hour, he was asleep, slumped over on the couch and there he remained until the next morning.


End file.
